South Africa's batters had no clue what to expect from New Zealand's bowling unit and were bowled out twice for low totals in the first Test in Christchurch. The hosts New Zealand defeated the visiting South Africa by an innings and 276 runs on Saturday (February 19), taking a 1-0 lead in the two-match series. New Zealand hope to whitewash South Africa by winning the second match. The first Test report of the NZ vs SA 2022 series is discussed in this article.

New Zealand vs South Africa Test Series 2022: First Match Report

New Zealand captain Tom Latham asked South Africa to bat first. The Proteas batters had no idea what they were up against as they were bowled out for 95 runs in the first innings. In response, the Kiwis scored 482 runs in their first innings, putting them in a commanding position. Trailing by 387 runs, South Africa conceded an innings defeat after being knocked out for only 111 runs in the second innings.

South Africa First Innings

The South African batters' technique was awful Against New Zealand pacers. Therefore, they began to lose wickets at regular intervals from the start of the innings, finally losing all of their wickets before the first day's tea.

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However, special credit should go to Kiwi pacer Matt Henry, who was brilliant with his line and lengths in this innings, taking 7 of the 10 South African wickets. The Proteas batting unit was suffocated by his accuracy. In the first innings, Henry's final bowling figures were 15-7-23-7.

South Africa's best scorer in the first innings was Zubayr Hamza (25). Besides, their highest partnership (33) came in the sixth wicket between Zubayr Hamza and Kyle Verreynne.

New Zealand First Innings

In response, New Zealand scored 482 runs in their first innings, owing to some excellent batting performances by the Kiwi players. The match's sole centurion, Henry Nicholls scored 105 runs, while wicketkeeper Tom Blundell (96) and Matt Henry (58) also contributed with the bat. Surprisingly, the best partnership in New Zealand's innings (94) was between Tom Blundell and Matt Henry on the tenth wicket.

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With their superb batting effort, New Zealand gained a whopping 387-run lead in the first innings. Duanne Olivier was the best among the Proteas bowlers. He took three wickets for the South African team.

South Africa Second Innings

South Africa's batting collapsed in the second innings, just as it had in the first. They were dismissed for just 111 runs. Middle-order batter Temba Bavuma scored the most runs for South Africa with 41, while wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne scored 30. They also put on the highest 31-run partnership for South Africa on the sixth wicket.

The veteran pacer, Tim Southee was New Zealand's most successful bowler in the second innings. He took the most wickets with five. South Africa gave Test debuts to two newcomers, Glenton Stuurman and Sarel Erwee. Neither of them performed well in the contest.

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Meanwhile, South Africa have dropped to fourth place in the Test Championship after losing the first Test of NZ vs SA 2022 series. On the other hand, New Zealand have climbed to sixth place in the ICC World Test Championship (2021-2023 cycle).

Player of the Match

Right-arm fast-medium bowler Matt Henry was named player of the match for his outstanding balling effort in both innings. He had a great game, taking 9 wickets, including a 7-wicket haul in the first innings.

Bottom Line 

New Zealand have a poor Test record against South Africa in their own backyard, which is surprising. Including this one, the Kiwis have only two Test victories over the Proteas in 21 matches at home. The Blackcaps won their first Test match against the Proteas at home in 2004. On the other hand, the South African Test team has won eight matches in New Zealand, with the other matches ending in draws. Therefore, New Zealand will be aiming to win a Test series against South Africa on home soil for the first time by winning the second Test of the NZ vs SA 2022 series, which begins on Friday (February 25) at the same venue.

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